


Rock Out

by vivvav



Category: Persona 5, Persona Series
Genre: F/M, Shizuka Sakamoto, The AFR Universe
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-15
Updated: 2017-12-15
Packaged: 2019-02-14 22:19:39
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,722
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13017327
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/vivvav/pseuds/vivvav
Summary: Still enjoying their new relationship, Ryuji and Hifumi decide to go to a heavy metal concert.





	Rock Out

**Author's Note:**

> Most of my works are in canon with each other. If you're wondering why Ryuji and Hifumi are a couple, check out "Confidant Roulette" and "Boys and Queens". I'd like to think you can read this story without those, but given what a rare ship this is, I figure context may be appreciated by some.

The Togos had become accustomed to Ryuji visiting since that dinner a month ago. Which wasn’t to say that the blonde-haired suitor’s visits weren’t still awkward, although they’d slowly gotten used to each other. That crappy stuff she did when her desires were distorted aside, Hifumi’s mom knew a lot about the TV business, and it was actually pretty interesting to listen to sometimes. Hifumi’s dad was a bit easier to talk to, because he at least watched sports on TV. He’d also started getting into the action movies Ryuji showed Hifumi once his daughter started taking an interest. Still, Ryuji was pretty glad that the two were at the doctor’s office this afternoon. Not that he and Hifumi were up to anything inappropriate. Yes, Ryuji had certain desires, as any teenage boy does. Whether Hifumi also had them, he had no idea. She never talked about such things. The more time they spent together, the more Ryuji saw Hifumi as this sort of refined princess, the kind of person you just don’t talk about that kind of stuff with. Which Ryuji knew wasn’t sustainable long-term, but considering how young their relationship was, he wasn’t in the mood to rush anything. For now, he just enjoyed their time getting to know each other.

Today, Hifumi and Ryuji were sitting in the living room of her home, listening to some old gagaku records. Hifumi’s eyes were closed, letting her mind be carried away by the slow sounds of lutes, flutes, and drums. There was something about this traditional music she really appreciated. It wasn’t particularly catchy or anything you could dance to, but it carried the history of the nation with it, evoking images of palaces and emperors and samurai. It was mood music. Serene and relaxing. Which was exactly why she wanted Ryuji to listen to it. He’d exposed her to so many exciting things in the past few months, but for as laid back as he could be, Ryuji didn’t seem to relax very much. He was a powder keg of energy, always ready to go and do something, and if he wasn’t doing anything, his attention had to be occupied. Ryuji basically had two modes: Action and anticipation. Hifumi hoped to help him find a third.

It seemed to be working. Hifumi opened one eye, taking a peek to see how Ryuji was reacting to the music. He seemed completely immersed in it, eyes closed, leaning back, arms spread out over the back of the couch. He looked so serene, so at peace. No tapping foot or shaking leg, no twiddling his thumbs or looking around the room, just stillness and steady breathing. It was amazing to see him this way. Honestly, Hifumi wasn’t sure if Ryuji would go for this or not, but it was just so gratifying to see him-

“ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ…”

Bored to sleep.

Part of Hifumi wanted to be angry, but she just couldn’t get mad at Ryuji. At least, not over this. The whole point of playing gagaku was to see if Ryuji would relax, and he WAS technically relaxing. Plus, Hifumi found it oddly cute. She knew Ryuji would balk at being described as such, but it was hard to dispute considering the tiny smile on his face. Hifumi wondered what pleasant dream Ryuji was having. Maybe he was driving a motorcycle on a mountain made of beef. Or having an expensive steak dinner with his mother. Maybe he and Ren were stealing the world’s biggest burger. From the way Ryuji licked his lips, Hifumi was pretty sure meat had something to do with it. Whatever grand carnivorous adventure Ryuji was on in his mind, he looked so happy that Hifumi didn’t want to disturb him.

Until she thought of a rather amusing way to do it.

* * *

Ren was leaving the school library, having just finished an intense study session. It was something he did a lot since his record was cleared. As it turned out, it became a much more pleasant environment once people stopped whispering how out of place he was there. It was the perfect place to study without distractions, as the general rules of being quiet meant that Ryuji, Ann, and Futaba didn’t bother him. He pulled out his phone to switch it off silent mode, seeing a new message from Hifumi.

> Hifumi: Ryuji is a genius.

Ren raised his eyebrow at that.

> Ren: How so?
> 
> Hifumi: He just innovated a brand-new battle strategy. It’s like nothing I’ve ever seen before.
> 
> Ren: Really? What’d he do?
> 
> Hifumi: I’ll show you the board.

Hifumi sent Ren a photo. Sure enough, there was a shogi board set up in it, Ryuji sitting at the other side. But it wasn’t the layout of the pieces on the board that caught Ren's eye. Rather, it was how Ryuji — who was obviously sleeping — had six shogi pieces sticking out from inside his top lip, like a row of wooden fangs with kanji on them. Ren tried to suppress his laughter, not wanting to disturb the people still inside the library.

> Hifumi: I have no idea how to combat this.
> 
> Ren: Looks like the Dragon King will finally lay waste to the Togo Kingdom.
> 
> Hifumi: So it seems. It has been nice knowing you, Ren.

* * *

“BLECH!”

Ryuji spit the last shogi piece out of his mouth as a giggling Hifumi tried her hardest to look sorry through the laughter.

“Y’know, you can get pissed at a guy without doin’ weird stuff to his face.”

“I wasn’t mad, Ryuji.” Hifumi calmed her laughter. “I just thought it would be funny.”

“Good. ‘Cuz I didn’t mean to doze off like that. That old stuff’s just so slow and quiet. It’s like the kinda thing you’d play to help you get to sleep.” Ryuji let out a yawn. “It ain’t bad, but it’s not the kinda thing I’d listen to for fun.”

“I see…” Hifumi looked at Ryuji curiously. “So long as we’re on the subject, what music DO you listen to?”

“Oh uh, y’know, intense high-energy stuff.” Ryuji scratched his head. “Some pop, mostly rock. A lotta metal.”

“‘Metal’? As in, ‘heavy metal’?”

“Yeah.”

“Isn’t that that incredibly loud music where all the singers are screaming so hard that you’re completely unable to understand what they’re singing?”

“I mean, some of it’s like that, yeah.” Ryuji pulled out his phone and started scrolling through his music. “But not all of it. There’s plenty of stuff where the dude’s singing sounds totally normal. Like, this is one of my favorite bands.” Ryuji hit play on his phone. The song had a thirty second intro with some heavy guitar strumming and one very prolonged high-pitched scream, but afterwards the vocalist started singing in very clear English. “See? Totally normal-soundin’.”

“Your favorite band is American?” Hifumi tried to focus on Ryuji and the song at the same time. It was certainly much louder than what she was used to, but the same could be said of Ryuji the first time she met him, and that turned out well. She didn’t dislike it at all. There was actually a certain energizing quality to it.

“Actually, they’re from Germany or somethin’.” Ryuji shrugged. “I guess English just makes it easier to sell their stuff all over the world. Not that I understand it.”

“If you don’t understand it, why do you listen to it?”

“The music’s good.” Ryuji closed his eyes and grinned as an intense guitar solo came on. “This stuff kept me from totally losin’ it when my leg was broken. It’s really good to listen to when you’re pissed off. It’s all loud and fast and sounds like how you feel, so it’s good for burnin’ off steam.” Ryuji opened his eyes again, looking at Hifumi. “Anyway, as for understandin’ it, I looked up what the songs mean online. It’s all stuff about adventures and facin’ the unknown and battles and gods. Real epic stuff.”

“Epic adventures and battles…” Hifumi’s eyes lit up. “What is this band’s name, exactly?”

“Sightless Savior.”

“I see…” Hifumi pulled out her phone and started looking up the band online.

“If you wanna know more, I could prolly put some of their songs on one of those thumb drives or somethin’.”

“Ooh! Look at this!” Hifumi held up her phone to Ryuji. “They’re going to be playing a concert here in Tokyo next month! We should go!”

“For real!?” Ryuji grabbed Hifumi’s phone. Sure enough, Sightless Savior was going to be playing a big concert hall nearby in just a few weeks. “Holy shit! They’re really comin’ here! And…” Ryuji gave Hifumi a confused look. “You wanna go?”

“Yes!” Hifumi nodded excitedly, bouncing in her seat a little. “I enjoy what I have heard so far! I imagine it would be exciting to experience it live!”

“Seriously?” Ryuji gave Hifumi an unsure look. “You’ve heard like, half a song.”

The track on Ryuji’s phone changed.

“One whole song” Hifumi said.

“Look, if you really wanna do this together, I ain’t gonna say no, but you oughta know what you’re gettin’ into.”

“What do you mean?”

“Metal concerts are a pretty heavy experience.”

“You don’t have to worry about me, Ryuji.” Hifumi’s posture straightened slightly, and she held her head up proudly. “I’ve been to concerts before. I’ve been attending Kosei’s music division’s annual symphony since before I started going to school there.”

“Yeah, this ain’t exactly the same thing…” Ryuji puts his hand on Hifumi’s shoulder, but it wasn’t a loving gesture. It was more pitying in nature. “People ain’t sittin’ in orderly seats. They’re all standin’ around and stuff.”

“Oh, like dancing?”

“Kinda. More headbangin’ and stuff. And then there’s the mosh pit.”

“Oh! I believe I’ve heard of that!” Hifumi grinned at Ryuji excitedly. “That’s when the singer jumps off the stage and the audience holds them up and passes them around, right?”

“That’s crowdsurfin’. It happens sometimes, but at a metal concert, a mosh pit’s more like a place where a bunch of dudes start fightin’.”

“What!?” Hifumi’s smile quickly faded. “Have you ever done this!?”

“Yeah.”

“Why would you get in a fist fight with somebody at a concert?”

“Well, it wasn’t a normal fight, exactly.” Ryuji looked up at the ceiling as he recalled the events of his first metal concert. “So I was seein’ a band in this small club, and this big hole forms in the crowd and folks make a circle. And then two guys at a time would come outta the circle and start chargin’ into each other over and over ’til one of ‘em fell.”

“That sounds barbaric!”

“Nah. They’re just throwin’ their weight around. And when one guy gets knocked down everyone stops ’til he’s helped back to his feet and outta the mosh pit.” Ryuji chuckled. “Metalheads are a rough crowd, but they’re actually super chill.”

“I see…” Hifumi was starting to understand why Ryuji liked this kind of thing. It sounded right up his alley. “So then you charged into the pit?”

“Well, not at the start. I saw what was goin’ on and kinda wanted to do it, but I figured I wouldn’t be able to pay attention to the concert if I was tacklin’ a dude.” Ryuji shook his head. “In the end though, I didn’t really have a choice.”

“What do you mean? Did somebody force you in?”

“Nah, like I said, people at these concerts are chill. They don’t really do that.” Ryuji made a circle with his hands and then started to pull them apart. “The circle ‘round the mosh pit started growin’ bigger and bigger. I tried movin’ away from it, but then I was gettin’ closer to this pillar with a weird metal plate fulla holes on it. It was like a big cheese grater, and it was freakin’ me out, so I figured, ‘screw it’. It was the grater or the pit, so I chose the pit.”

“And then what happened!?”

“I got knocked on my ass in two seconds.” Ryuji laughed. “Everyone was cool. They helped me get up and outta the pit. They were really nice about it. It was like, they saw I tried, and they accepted me.” Ryuji’s smile grew wistful. “Everyone at school was really shitty at the time. All that ‘track traitor’ crap was startin’ up. So I really needed it.”

“I never realized heavy metal was so important to you.” Hifumi stared at Ryuji in awe.

“I mean, it’s not THAT big a deal.” Ryuji rubbed the back of his neck. “It’s not like it’s a big part of who I am or nothin’. But I do like it. It makes me, y’know, happy.”

“Well, I want to experience that happiness too.” Hifumi beamed at her blonde beau. “Let’s go to the concert.”

* * *

Ryuji tapped his foot as he waited outside the concert hall. The doors were open and people were starting to go inside, but Hifumi still hadn’t shown up yet. He had gotten a message saying that she had taken a bit longer getting ready for the show than she meant to, but was supposed to arrive any minute. Ryuji told Hifumi that as long as they dressed up in black, they wouldn’t stand out in the crowd. For his part, he was wearing a black undershirt, black shorts, and a studded wristband on his right hand. He wondered what Hifumi would show up in. So far, the only frame of reference he had for her outfits was all this stuff with weird patterns and her formal wear. Since he told her to dress up in black, his best guess was that she’d show up in the same suit she wore to their first date. Which wouldn’t fit in with the crowd, but it’s not like he could expect her to own a heavy metal ensemble.

“Ryuji! Over here!”

“Yo!” Ryuji turned towards Hifumi’s voice. “I was beginnin’ to think you got lost or someth-“

Ryuji’s jaw dropped when he saw Hifumi. She was not dressed in a conservative suit. There were only two words to describe her outfit:

Gothic Lolita.

Hifumi was wearing a large puffy black dress with lace and frills all over, black stockings, arm-length black gloves, thick black knee-high platform boots, and had forgone the usual red string in her hair for a large black bow. She also had very heavy black eyeliner. She was not oblivious to Ryuji’s mouth-agape stare. Hifumi had set out to astonish her boyfriend with her outfit, and evidently, she had succeeded.

“Like my outfit?” Hifumi gave the closest thing she could to a twirl in those thick boots of hers. While she had mastered balancing in them, they weren’t exactly conducive to graceful movements.

“It’s… somethin’.” Ryuji could not stop gawking. “I didn’t think you had that kinda thing lyin’ around.”

“I didn’t! These are all recent purchases!” Hifumi started chuckling. “You should have seen Mother when I stepped out of the house like this. I thought she was going to faint!”

“I don’t blame her.” Ryuji’s eyes lingered on the skirt. “I think I’m gonna faint myself.”

“What’s wrong?” Hifumi pouted. “I thought you’d like how I looked in this outfit.”

“I do!” Ryuji stopped staring at the outfit and looked into Hifumi’s eyes. “You could be, like, in a garbage bag and still look great! This just ain’t what I was expectin’ at all!”

“Yes, that’s the idea.” Hifumi grinned again. “I pulled out all the stops! A bold strategy, wouldn’t you say?”

“Maybe a li’l too bold.” Ryuji rubbed the back of his head. “I think you look great, but I dunno if there’ll be many other girls at the concert lookin’ like that.”

“Oh my.” Hifumi’s eyes scanned the crowd entering the concert hall. Every girl she could see — while largely dressed in all black — looked nothing like she did. “I’m going to stick out like a sore thumb, aren’t I?”

“Yeah, but nobody’ll bug ya over it.” Ryuji put his arm around Hifumi and the two headed for the venue’s door. “The worst thing anyone’ll say is that you’re obviously new to metal. Which, y’know, you are.”

Hifumi got more than a few stares as they made their way through the crowd, trying to find a good spot to watch the concert from. She was beginning to feel self-conscious, but a lot of her anxiety went away by Ryuji pulling her closer to him. Additionally, Ryuji was shooting dirty looks at anybody he saw looking at Hifumi funny, and while he wasn’t really going to intimidate anybody in this crowd, it at least seemed to earn the couple peoples’ respect. Any lingering self-doubt Hifumi might have had was completely banished once the music started, and the energy of the cheering crowd chased away all awkwardness from the room. Hifumi began to understand what Ryuji meant about the Metal scene being an accepting place. When the band started playing, nobody had any reason to care what you were wearing or if you were hardcore enough to be in the crowd. Everyone was pumped up, and judgment had no place in an environment like that. So long as you enjoyed the music, you belonged. And Hifumi certainly did enjoy the music.

Of course, Ryuji enjoyed it a LOT more. Where Hifumi let herself nod her head in time with the music, Ryuji was full-on headbanging, hunched over and throwing his head around enough to give himself a headache while throwing horns with both hands. After an hour of this, stomping around, fist pumping, and screaming his head off, Ryuji quit focusing on the band and turned his eye towards the mosh pit. Not that Hifumi could blame him. It was a spectacle, nothing like what Ryuji had described to her before.

A massive gap had formed in the audience front of the stage. It was almost as large as the stage itself. Dozens of guys were running around in a huge circle inside the gap, like a maelstrom of human flesh. It was chaos, everybody crashing into each other as they ran. Some bumped into each other on accident. Some were shoulder-checking each other on purpose. Some managed to avoid crashing into anybody entirely, running until they tired themselves out and coolly leaving the mosh pit. Some were even throwing themselves into the surrounding crowd not doing any running themselves, getting pushed back by fellow concert-goers like wrestlers bouncing off the tight rope. Some people on the edge were even so daring as to just wait until one of the runners got close enough, then they’d reach out and push them, setting off a chain reaction of dudes bumping into each other. The mosh pit had taken on a life of its own, a massive arena for the daring to test their courage and stamina. Even when the band moved on to a slower song, the pandemonium continued.

Hifumi recognized the look of longing on Ryuji’s face. It was the same kind of longing Hifumi felt whenever she went a while without a decent opponent. Hifumi couldn’t think of many activities that screamed 'Ryuji Sakamoto' more than running around in a circle crashing into people.

“Go!” Hifumi pushed Ryuji on the shoulder and pointed to the mosh pit.

“Are you sure!?” The music and crowd were so loud that Ryuji had to yell directly into Hifumi’s ear for her to hear him. “I don’t wanna leave you alone!”

“I’ll be fine!” Hifumi let her own mouth lower from Ryuji’s ear for a moment to give him a kiss on the cheek. “Go wild!”

Ryuji didn’t press the issue further. He dashed away to the mosh pit, pushing through the crowd until he broke through the ring of people surrounding the pit and joined the chaos. Hifumi managed to keep her eyes focused on Ryuji as he joined the runners, his yellow hair serving to help identify him. Ryuji was like an animal, getting jostled around by the crowd and throwing his weight into others just as hard. As barbaric as the activity sounded, Ryuji was really in his element, and seeing him unleashed like that excited Hifumi a bit. The big thing about Ryuji that made Hifumi attracted to him was how raw he was. He wasn’t big on social niceties or pretending to be ok with things he didn’t like, and he always gave you his honest opinion. Which didn’t mean he was a total bad boy or anything. Ryuji was very nice and very sweet, and a lot more considerate than people gave him credit for. But there was a real rough and aggressive side to him. The warrior who fought to protect both Hifumi’s honor and person that first day they met. But there weren’t exactly a lot of opportunities for him to fully unleash that side of himself in civilized society. In the mosh pit though, Ryuji came alive. For Hifumi, seeing him fight like that, even if it wasn’t a full-on slugfest like in that alley, was invigorating. Especially with the music serving as the perfect backdrop for the action. And just like that, Hifumi began to get really into the concert.

For Ryuji, the mosh pit was liberating. Although he thought he had put the matter to bed with Ren, the fact is, he really did miss the excitement of being a Phantom Thief. He wasn’t much for sneaking around or solving puzzles, but when it came to beating up Shadows, he was something else. The problem with the real world was you couldn’t go around hitting people all the time. Not that Ryuji wanted to just hit random people, but everyday high school life didn’t exactly get his adrenaline pumping. Here though, everyone was in on it. Nobody was in the mosh pit who didn’t know what they were getting into, and if you did get hit or even knocked on your ass, it wasn’t like you were going to be seriously hurt. Getting to run around and crash into people was fun. It was a chance to be himself and face no repercussions for it. It was also kind of interesting to see all the different types of people he was bumping into. Fat dude with a beard. Some older guy who had to be at least in his 40s. A middle schooler who seemed to bounce off others instead of pushing them with his weight. Haru. Some foreigner, maybe an American or some-

Wait…

“HARU!?” Ryuji slowed down, giving the familiar face the chance to catch up to him. Sure enough, it was Haru, though not quite as Ryuji had ever seen her. She had a black tank top, tight leather pants with a studded belt, combat boots, fingerless gloves, and her hair tied back in a bun with a black headband.

Haru’s face lit up and she waved at Ryuji. He couldn’t hear what she was saying, but by the movement of her lips he was guessing it was “Hello, Ryuji-Kun!” Haru’s usual warm smile was quickly replaced by a devious look. The next thing Ryuji knew, he was being knocked off his feet by the full power of the Okumura Foods heiress. He landed on his bad leg, screaming in pain as the full weight of the rest of his body pressed his tibia into the concrete floor. Several runners broke away from the action to help Ryuji to his feet, including a horrified and remorseful Haru. Ryuji was not injured, but his leg was sore, and he had trouble standing. Haru helped escort him out of the mosh pit and back to Hifumi.

Upon reaching Hifumi, Ryuji was treated to his third surprise of the night: Hifumi Togo was headbanging, her long black hair whipping around in circles like a fan blade. Ryuji watched in amusement for a minute, not wanting to interrupt Hifumi now that she'd fully embraced the concert. Hifumi’s spinning hair started to slow down, and she stood up straight, stretching back her neck. After another moment, she finally noticed Ryuji leaning on Haru. Unable to hold a proper conversation through screaming over the music, the three made their way to the venue’s lobby, where they found a bench. They could still hear the music, but now they could hear each other too.

“…So yeah, it hurts, but that’s all” Ryuji said. “I should be good to go back in a few minutes.”

“You’re not getting in the mosh pit again” Hifumi said.

“Not the most pit! Just the concert!”

“I’m not so sure that’s a good idea either.” Hifumi frowned at Ryuji’s outstretched leg. “There’s still another hour left. Do you really think you should be standing for that long?”

“If you’d like, I could support your weight for the remainder of the show, Ryuji-Kun.” Haru gave Ryuji an uneasy smile. “This is all my fault after all.” Haru’s eyed widened and she looked at Hifumi. “Oh! Not that I’m trying to interrupt your date! I certainly care for Ryuji-Kun as a friend, but I would never try to steal him from another woman- Oh my!” Haru jumped to her feet and bowed to Hifumi. “Where are my manners!? I’m Haru Okumura. It’s nice to meet you, Hifumi-Chan, even if it is under such unfortunate circumstances. Wait, is now really the time for this!?” Haru wiped the sweat from her brow and sighed. “Oh dear. My thoughts seem to be scattered in every direction at the moment.”

Hifumi forced herself to keep a straight face. Haru Okumura was just as much of a character as Ryuji had told her. Bright and bubbly, refined but very quick to act familiar with people, a corporate princess with a dark side that casually emerged at times. Despite the fact that she had just hurt Ryuji and interrupted their date, Hifumi found it hard to get mad at Haru. She dared not speak out of fear of laughter escaping from her mouth before words of reassurance could.

“Chill, Haru” Ryuji said. “It’s fine. We know you didn’t mean it. ‘Sides, it ain’t that bad.” Ryuji began to stand up. “I think I’m ready to get back in there and-“ The second Ryuji put weight on his hurt leg, he hissed in pain.

“Ryuji!” Hifumi jumped up and helped stabilize Ryuji. “That’s enough fun for one evening. We’re leaving. Let’s head for the train station.”

“Wait a moment!” Haru pulled out her phone. “Ryuji-Kun shouldn’t have to use the trains in his condition. Let me call my driver. He’ll bring the car around and we can take you both to your homes.”

“I don’t gotta-“ Ryuji was pushed back down onto the bench by Hifumi.

“That’s an excellent idea, Okumura-San” Hifumi said.

Against Ryuji’s protests, the two girls led him out of the concert hall, one supporting him from each side. He seemed to stop complaining when he got into Haru’s limousine. There was a fair bit of traffic, so the three had plenty of time to chat in the luxury automobile. Ryuji’s leg was stretched out across Hifumi’s lap, Hifumi gently massaging it, trying to ease some of the pain. Haru and Hifumi got along very well, their mutual proper upbringing making it easy for them to hit it off. After a few minutes, the two were on a first-name basis. For Ryuji’s part, it was pretty amusing to see these two girls speaking to each other so politely while dressed the way they were. After about an hour, they finally arrived at Ryuji’s apartment, and he said goodnight to the both of them.

* * *

Hifumi came by Ryuji’s apartment the next day to check on him. It was her first time visiting Ryuji’s apartment or meeting his mother, and the experience was overwhelming to say the least. Shizuka Sakamoto was definitely Ryuji’s mother. She had the same brown eyes and wicked grin as her son, and while her voice wasn’t as loud, she was VERY enthusiastic. She kept saying how Hifumi was even prettier than her photos in the magazine articles and immediately started brewing tea, forcing Hifumi to sit down and drink. The longer the conversation went on, the more flustered HIfumi got. Shizuka seemed to speak a mile a minute, having a hundred questions for Hifumi and giving her very little time to answer them. Eventually though, Hifumi’s insistence on seeing how Ryuji was doing got Shizuka to back off. Once she finished her tea, Shizuka led Hifumi to Ryuji’s room.

“Ryuji, are you dressed?” Shizuka banged on the door.

“Yeah, Mom!”

“Good! You have company!”

“Who is it!?”

“Your girlfriend.” Shizuka opened the door to Ryuji’s room, grinning mischievously. Ryuji was lying on his bed reading manga.

“Hifumi!” Ryuji sat up, the book flying out of his hands. “What’re you doin’ here!?”

“I wanted to see how you were doing” Hifumi said. “Does your leg still hurt?”

“Uh, a bit, but it’s a lot better than last night.”

“That’s good to hear.” Hifumi’s eyes scanned the room. It was a little messy, but not disgusting. There wasn’t underwear lying on the floor or anything. There were a few posters of action movies and shonen cartoons on the walls. Aside from the bed, there was a desk with a laptop on it, and a dresser with a small TV and game console on top. “May I come in?”

“Uh, sure! Totally.”

As Hifumi stepped into the room, Shizuka started snickering.

“Can I get you two anything?” Shizuka asked.

“Yeah, Mom.” Ryuji gave his mother a slight glare. “How ‘bout some privacy?”

“Of course, of course.” Shizuka slowly closed the door. “Don’t go getting any funny ideas, you two.”

“MOM!”

Shizuka laughed as the door closed. Hifumi was about to say something, but Ryuji held his finger up, staring at the door. He waited for a few seconds.

“Quit spyin’ on us, Mom!”

Footsteps quickly retreated from the door.

“My, this is all a bit awkward, isn’t it?” Hifumi looked at Ryuji uneasily. “In retrospect, I suppose I should have asked you if it was alright for me to come over.”

“No way! This is an awesome surprise!” Ryuji patted a spot on the bed next to him. “C’mon, sit down.”

“Alright.” Hifumi sat down next to Ryuji. His bed was a bit lumpy, but still comfortable. It definitely felt strange being in his bedroom, but she couldn't say that she disliked it. “Your mother is very nice.”

“Yeah.” Ryuji leaned back against the wall. “Mom’s great. Though she gets kinda jazzed up about stuff sometimes. It’s why I haven’t been in a rush to introduce you. She didn’t chew your ear off, did she?”

“It was nothing I couldn’t handle.” Hifumi smirked at Ryuji. “It was essentially like talking to you, but older and a woman.”

“Are we really that alike?”

“Oh, yes.” Hifumi giggled. “First Haru, now your mother. I’m meeting a lot of the other women in your life this week.”

“Yeah, I guess.” Ryuji shrugged. “Who knows, maybe I’ll just get it over with and introduce you to Ann next.”

“If she’s half the character Haru turned out to be, I’m sure I’ll enjoy it.”

Ryuji’s phone buzzed. He looked at it and saw a message from Haru.

“Huh. Speak of the devil.”

“Is it Haru?”

“Yeah.” Ryuji put his phone down. “I’ll check it later.”

“No, go ahead.” Hifumi waved her hand. “I’m sure she just wants to know how your leg is.”

“Alright.” Ryuji opened the message and his brow furrowed. “Oh boy.”

“What is it?”

Ryuji showed Hifumi the message.

> Haru: I’m afraid last night’s events have led to another problem.

Haru had sent a link. Hifumi recognized it as being from the same tabloid that published that article about her and Ryuji back before they started dating.

“Think we should check it out?” Ryuji asked.

“Yes, let’s.”

Ryuji tapped on the link. The first thing he saw was a photo of Haru and Hifumi escorting him outside of the concert. 

> THE FALSE PRINCESS’S FALL INTO DEBAUCHERY CONTINUES!
> 
> For the past few months, we’ve heard whispers of Hifumi Togo’s continuing fling with the mysterious Ronald-Kun, but this photo taken outside of last night’s Sightless Savior concert adds a whole new level of intrigue to the story! Not only is the girl once called the princess of the Shogi world dressed in an outrageous outfit completely contrary to her past image, but there’s another girl with them! As can be clearly seen in the photo, Ronald-Kun has a girl on each arm! And he doesn’t appear to be your run-of-the-mill playboy either. Take a close look at the other girl. That’s Haru Okumura, heiress to the Okumura Foods fortune! It seems the prim and proper daughter of the corrupt Big Bang Burger executive Kunikazu Okumura has fallen from grace since her father’s death. Just what kind of mischief are these three young devils getting up to!? For now, we can only speculate.

“Holy shit!” Ryuji handed the phone to Hifumi so she could read the article. “This is bad. This is really, really bad!”

“Hmm…” Hifumi read the article calmly as Ryuji started to freak out.

“I mean, I thought we’d get used to this bullshit, but this is just low! Now they’re draggin' Haru into this!? And just look at that crap they wrote! What are they implyin’!?”

“Evidently, they’re implying that you, I, and Haru are in an illicit relationship” Hifumi said.

“I knew it! That’s totally messed up! I don’t even think of Haru like that!”

“Ryuji, calm down.” Hifumi put down the phone.

“How can I!? How can you!? This ain’t a one-off thing like before, they’re gonna keep comin’ at you like this! I thought these guys would just move on to the next thing, but they’re dedicated to trashing your rep!”

“I suppose…” Hifumi turned to Ryuji. “But you know what?”

“What?”

“Screw my rep.”

Hifumi dove at Ryuji, planting her lips on his and pushing him down on the bed, lying on top of him. Ryuji’s eyes widened and he remained still for a moment as he processed what was happening. He quickly got over it, wrapping his arms around Hifumi and returning the kiss.

The two stayed in that bedroom for the rest of the afternoon.

**Author's Note:**

> Man I did not expect this one to go where it did. It really was just supposed to be about the two of them going to a concert and seeing what I could come up with. The only thing I really planned was Haru showing up.
> 
> This story also draws on my own life. Ryuji's story about his first mosh pit is autobiographical. The concert the two actually go to is basically just copied from my own experience at a Blind Guardian concert.


End file.
